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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers

NEW YORK (AP) — PepsiCo Inc. said Friday that it plans to invest an additional $2.5 billion in China in the next three years on new plants and research facilities as the food and beverage maker builds up its presence in the growing market.
The company made the announcement in a news release Friday from Shanghai, site of the Shanghai Expo, where PepsiCo is a sponsor of the USA Pavilion.

OSCEOLA, Wis. (AP) — Polaris Industries Inc. says it will shut down its parts plant in the western Wisconsin city of Osceola (ahss-see-OH'-luh).
The Medina, Minn.-based maker of snowmobiles, ATVs and Victory motorcycles says it's moving many of the operations to a new facility in the Monterrey-Saltillo area of Mexico.

GUANGZHOU, China (AP) — A worker at Foxconn Technology Group, which makes iPhones and iPads, jumped to his death Friday from a building in the southern Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen — the ninth suicide this year at the world's largest contract maker of electronics, state-run media reported.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The heads of Tesla Motors Inc. and Toyota Motors Corp. surprised the auto world Thursday by announcing a partnership to develop and build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.
Akio Toyoda, CEO of the world's largest automaker, said Toyota will invest $50 million in Tesla when the company begins selling stock to the public, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his company will purchase the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.

Pharma Tech Industries (PTI), a contract manufacturer and packer of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and personal care products, is focused on exceeding customers’ expectations. To consistently achieve their high quality standards, they rely on x-ray and metal detection systems from Mettler-Toledo Safeline and checkweighers from Mettler-Toledo Hi-Speed.

Lista International Corporation (Holliston, MA) has developed its durable Mobile MRO Workstations, which feature high-density storage cabinets on wheels. The stations can be easily maneuvered to bring parts, tools, supplies, and equipment directly to job sites, saving time and increasing productivity.

The Polyflex FR fire-resistant impregnation resin from IMPCO (East Providence, RI) is suitable for sealing electronic connectors, wires, and wiring assemblies against corrosion. Polyflex FR can create a permanent flame-retardant barrier that prevents corrosion-related failures by uniformly filling all gaps and pores, and will not reliquify, melt, or burn.

Carlo Gavazzi (Buffalo Grove, IL) announces the launch of the BFD Series, a light curtain that enhances the safe and efficient operation of industrial doors. The BFD’s sequential blanking algorithm allows it to distinguish between a door closing and an object or person in the door, according to the company.

Philadelphia Scientific (Montgomeryville, PA) has expanded its line of battery water monitors to include the Blinky, Smart Blinky, and Smart Blinky Remote, which are all designed to meet the battery maintenance needs and budgets of any warehouse or distribution center, according to the company.

While New Mexico is facing a tough economy like anyone else, they have the advantage of more than 300 days of sunshine every year. Gov. Bill Richardson is pushing hard to bring more solar manufacturers into his state, all with the hope of becoming the nation's capitol for the green technology. 2,500 new jobs have already been created, and everyone is hopeful for more.

Unlike the wind or the sun, our ocean's tides are reliable like clockwork. That's why South Korea has decided to build what will become the world's largest tidal power plant, which is projected to power up to half a million homes. The massive turbines certainly look more menacing than the white windmills that have been popping up around the U.

"Tell everyone it's our free oil giveaway bonanza."
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Duct tape can fix anything, right? It's used by maintenance professionals, in one form or another, on countless jobs. But can it be used to build something, too? Jamie and Adam of Mythbusters fame once again do the impossible—they build a 100-foot bridge entirely out of the sticky stuff. Does it work? Do one of the Mythbusters fall to a sticky death? Watch the video to find out.

What’s scary about running a business is the sometimes latent and foreboding knowledge that there are far-reaching effects to everything . As we’ve seen time and again—and especially lately—natural disasters can have the ability to shut us down completely, whether or not we even operate in the hard hit areas.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Nissan Motor Co. is planning to recall 48,700 trucks and sport utility vehicles for problems with a suspension part that could lead to a rough ride.
Spokesman Colin Price says the company is working on details with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and expects the recall to begin this week.

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union fined 10 producers of memory chips, including Samsung, a combined euro331 million ($403 million) on Wednesday for colluding in a price-fixing cartel.
The EU Commission said that the companies, mostly non-European, rigged the market between 1998 and 2002 by sharing secret information which allowed them to set prices and quotations for Dynamic Random Access Memory chips in Europe.

DETROIT (AP) — AM General LLC, best known as the maker of hulking Humvees and gas-guzzling Hummers, is going greener with a new foray into the electric vehicle business.
The South Bend, Ind., company will handle final assembly of Ford Motor Co.'s electric Transit Connect commercial vans, which will go on sale next spring.

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner visited some of the top exporters in Washington state on Tuesday in advance of a trip to encourage China to open more of its markets to American companies and their products.
After going to Boeing Co.'s 737 jetliner plant in Renton, Geithner and Gov.

HAMMELBURG, Germany (AP) — On the outside, it looks like a normal SUV. But the prototype "autonomous robot car" — fitted with sensors and scanners, multifocal camera systems and powerful computers — might one day help avoid military fatalities from bombings and ambushes — or so its designers hope.

Deere & Co. said Wednesday that its second-quarter profit jumped 16 percent as sales of farm and construction equipment improved, so the maker of iconic green and yellow machinery raised its outlook for the second time this year.
The Moline, Ill.-based company said it generated $547.5 million in net income, or $1.